His odds, at 10-1, actually seem rather unfavorable considering he finished third in the Kentucky Derby and sixth in the Preakness Stakes despite losing a shoe in the race.
Mucho Macho Man also recorded the fastest five-furlongs time (59.57) in the field during workouts at Belmont Park.
Part of Mucho Macho Man's strong workouts could be attributed to new jockey Ramon Dominguez, who appears to have built a strong connection with the three-year-old.
Dominguez has yet to win a Triple Crown race, but he was the recipient of the 2010 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey. He also knows Belmont Park very well, becoming the second jockey in Belmont Park's history to win six races on a single race card on Sunday.
All the signs are pointing to a solid race by Mucho Macho Man (assuming he doesn't lose another shoe) and I was actually surprised he had 10-1 odds.
Mucho Macho Man could be one of those horses that pays off big time at the Belmont Stakes for those gamblers out there. His biggest competition figures to be favorite Animal Kingdom (2-1) and Nehro (4-1). Shackleford is also in the discussion. He certainly has the speed, but I don't believe he has the endurance to pull it off at the 1 1/2 mile course.
Mucho Macho Man also has the advantage of seeing Animal Kingdom and Shackleford twice thus far (in the Derby and Preakness) and Nehro skipped out on the Preakness.
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